Purpose To compare proteomic profiles of spermatozoa from patients with varicocele and poor sperm quality before and after varicocelectomy. Methods This work was designed as a prospective and observational study. The study was based on 20 men with varicocele grade 3 and poor sperm quality undergoing varicocelectomy at the Fertility Unit of Royan institute in 2009. Two semen samples were collected, one before varicocelectomy and the other after surgery. Protein separation was done by two-dimensional protein electrophoresis, and analyzed by gel densitometry and mass spectrometry. Differential sperm protein expression levels were measured by gel densitometry. Results Comparison of the sperm parameters showed that sperm motility and concentration were increased after varicocelectomy. At the level of protein, a total of 3 protein spots were identified whose expression was significantly lower in sperm samples before varicocelectomy compared with after surgery including heat shock protein A5 (HSPA5), superoxide dismutase 1 (SOD1) and δ-subunit of the catalytic core of mitochondrial adenosine triphosphate synthase (ATP5D). Conclusions High grade varicocoele affects sperm protein expression presumably because of increasing testicular temperature. These proteins play essential roles in sperm production, DNA integrity protection, and sperm motility. This novel study demonstrates that varicocelectomy can improve both sperm quality and proteins expression.
SUMMARYThe absence of the acrosome causes the situation which is called globozoospermia. There are a few studies, mostly as case reports, about correlation between levels of sperm DNA damage in patients with total round-headed spermatozoa. We investigated this correlation as well as CMA3 positive spermatozoa in 20 globozoospermic men (with more than 90% round-headed spermatozoa) attending to Royan Institute. Semen samples divided into three parts to semen analysis, to measure DNA fragmentation index (DFI) using sperm chromatin structure assay (SCSA) and to detect CMA3 + sperm cells by chromomycin A3 staining and fluorescent microscopy. Our results showed that there were significant differences in sperm concentration, total sperm motility, and normal morphology between patients and controls group (p < 0.001). Moreover, the average of DFI and CMA3 positive spermatozoa in patients group significantly increases compared with control group (p < 0.001). A significant correlation between DFI and CMA3 + in total population was also detected in patients group (r = 0.45, p = 0.046). To our knowledge, this is the largest study about correlation between DNA damage levels and CMA3 positive spermatozoa with round head sperm cells in total globozoospermic men. It seems that the increase in DNA damage may be because of defective sperm DNA compaction, as we detected CMA3 positive sperm cells in these patients.
Purpose To find a relationship between absence of annulus and asthenozoospermia in Iranian men. Methods In the present study, semen samples from 100 asthenozoospermic and 20 normozospermic patients were analyzed for sperm concentration and motility. Spermatozoa were immunostained for the two septin subunits Sept4 and Sept7. The absence of the annulus structure was confirmed by transmission electron microscopy and western blot analysis for septin 4. DNA sequencing for all coding exons of SEPT12 was performed for a patient using peripheral blood sample. Results Specific antibodies for SEPT4 and SEPT7 consistently labeled the annuli in spermatozoa from all of the 20 normozospermic men, while in one of 100 patients with asthenozoospermia, 75 % of sperms lacking septin 4 or septin 7 proteins at the annulus. It was shown that the structural defect in annulus formation is not caused by point mutation of SEPT12 gene.
ConclusionsIn conclusion, the results of this study demonstrated that the frequency of the absence of annulus in asthenozoospermic sample of Iranian population has a low frequency and could not be assume as a diagnostic marker for classifying asthenozoospermic patients.
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